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The whole basement area of 75, Spring Bank, Hull was flooded to a depth of 3 feet during the heavy rainfalls of June, 2007 and all the contents were destroyed. This part of the building is vital to the ongoing training of new volunteers and the need for seminars with all their team. When not used by the Samaritans, other charities rent the area for their meetings and training sessions. The flooding made it impossible for either the Samaritans or the other charities to use these facilities. Since June last year, all these events have been held in other locations, for which they have had to pay rental, thus not only loosing income but having to pay extra rent themselves.
The Samaritans are self-supporting and rely upon donations from ‘friends’ and fund raising efforts by their own volunteers. This income helps to cover their everyday expenses, including the payment of two part time staff – a cleaner and a secretary. On Wednesday 12 April a cheque for £11,000 was presented as a direct result of funds raised through Rotary from friends and supporters throughout the British Isles and overseas. "The ‘sponsoring club’ for this particular project is The Rotary Club of Holderness and is typical of similar projects undertaken jointly and individually by Rotary Clubs within Hull and throughout District 1270 which covers an area North and South of the River Humber and other parts of Yorkshire. One of the main fund raising events for this fund was a fashion show organised and led by Naomi Campbell, and held in the British Natural History Museum in 2007. Despite a high percentage of Samaritan volunteers being flooded out of their own homes, this Branch continued to give a 24 hour service throughout the whole of this period. This is typical of the unstinting support and service this organisation gives to the public all through the year and it was felt by Rotary it was our privilege to be able to help them at this time. The money being provided today will be used to replace 40 chairs, a variety of small tables, a projector and screen for training purposes, computers and I.T. training aids, book shelves and books, a gazibo used at outside events, carpets, and display boards. Today the Rotary Club of Holderness is represented by their President, Alex Holland, supported by Immediate Past President Ken Cherry (Member of District 1270 Flood Relief Committee), Rotarian Justin Griffith (Project Liason Officer) and Past President Brian Armstrong. |
Flood Relief Support 
